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Thursday, October 16, 2014

LOCAL MEDAL OF HONOR RECIPIENT: Gen. Stephen Thomas of West Fairlee was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic leadership during the Battle of Cedar Creek. His command included the 8th Vermont Regiment which included a number of other local men. (West Fairlee Historical Society)

SHERIDAN'S FAMOUS RIDE: Gen. Philip Sheridan was depicted on the cover of Harper's Illustrated Weekly riding to rally his routed army at Cedar Creek near Middletown, Virginia. Returning from Washington, the general ad rested overnight at Winchester and awoke to the news of battle.

VERMONT AT CEDAR CREEK DISPLAYED: The actions of the Vermont Brigade are commemorated in the wall-size painting of the battle by Vermont artist Julian Scott. It was purchased by the State in 1874 and now is displayed in the Cedar Creek Room in the Vermont State House.
This battle was chosen by Vermont Civil War veterans because more Vermonters were involved in this battle than in any other Civil War battle. The faces of many actual participants are depicted in Scott's masterpiece. (Courtesy Vermont State House Curator's Office)

In this detail from The Battle of Cedar Creek, Capt. Thomas Kennedy is carried from the battlefield after being wounded. (Courtesy Vermont State Curator's Office)

VERMONT'S ROLE AT BATTLE RECOGNIZED ANEW: Sen. Joe Benning (Caledonia-Orange) and Vermont Civil War Historian Howard Coffin are spearheading an effort to erect a highway sign at Cedar Creek Battlefield during the 150th anniversary observances this October. The sign, describing the role of Vermont soldiers, is show being unveiled in the Cedar Creek Room in the Vermont State House by House Speaker Shap Smith (left) and Howard Coffin. (Courtesy photo by Joe Benning)

Joe Benning, Howard Coffin and Vermont group with the new Vermont highway sign and display at the 150th Anniversary observances at Cedar Creek Battlefield, October 19, 2014. (courtesy Joe Benning)

Men from the area participated in both
major battles and minor skirmishes of the American Civil War. Since the 150th
anniversary observances began, this column has covered the significant
engagements at Bull Run, Antietam, Gettysburg and the Wilderness. This article
describes the role of Union forces, including local Vermont and New Hampshire
men, at the Battle of Cedar Creek.

Fought on October 19, 1864, it was the
culminating battle for Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. More Vermonters fought in
this battle than in any other battle of the war and more than 500 were killed,
wounded, or missing.

In
addition to regimental histories and internet sources, Howard Coffin’s Full Duty, Vermonters in the Civil War andJonathan A. Noyalias’ The Battle of Cedar Creek: Victory From the
Jaws of Defeat provided complete details on the battle. State Senator Joe
Benning and the West Fairlee Historical Society also provided valuable
information.

The fertile Shenandoah Valley, running
north and south in western Virginia, was one of the important theatres of the
Civil War in 1864.The Union strategy
was to gain control of the valley and prevent its abundant harvest from being
used by the Confederacy. It was also to prevent the valley from being used as
an “avenue of invasion” against the North.

For the previous three years, Northern
forces had suffered a series of defeats in the Valley, leading one Vermont
soldier to refer to it as the “valley of humiliation.” In the summer of 1864
the Union forces there were reorganized under the command of Gen. Philip
Sheridan who was charged with the task of wrestling the valley from the
Confederates’ grasp. The Union army of 31,000 was opposed by a Confederate
force of 20,000 under the command of Gen. Jubal Early.

After a series of victories in September
and early October, Union forces embarked on a campaign to destroy the valley’s
resources. Known as “The Burning,” it involved the destruction of hundreds of
barns and mills with their contents of grain and the seizing of 11,000 head of
cattle.

Northern morale, both in the army and at
home, soared with these victories. Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee knew, even
with these setbacks, that this campaign tied up Union forces that would
otherwise be used in the Union attempt to capture the southern capital at
Richmond.

By the second week of October, during a
respite from hostilities, the Union force was encamped along Cedar Creek near
Middletown, VA.There was no feeling of
impending action and the soldiers rested. One Vermonter wrote “absolute
security prevailed.”Sheridan travelled
to Washington, leaving Gen. Horace Wright in command.

The Confederate’s Jubal Early was faced
with the choice of retreating to replenish his forces or attacking, using
surprise as a tactical advantage.He
chose the latter. His reconnaissance suggested that the Union left flank was
vulnerable.

Gen.
Stephen Thomas of West Fairlee was officer-of-day and he was concerned. On the
afternoon of Oct. 18, he had noticed a group of men in civilian clothes
observing the Union lines. He reported his concerns to his superiors, but to no
avail.During the night he rode beyond
his picket lines and found himself confronted by enemy soldiers.He narrowly escaped capture.

The
soldiers he met were the beginning of the major advance against the Union
left.Thomas’s brigade was ordered to
hold the line. That 800-man brigade included men from the Vermont 8th as
well as regiments from several other states.

Many men from the local area were in companies
C and D of the 8 thInfantry. Capt. Alfred Getchell of Bradford was
the commander of Co. D. He was joined by 2nd Lt. Horace Emerson of
Corinth and a number of noncommissioned officers and privates.

While
many in the Union camp were caught asleep or only partially dressed, this
brigade fought hand to hand until ordered to fall back. The 8th Vermont lost
many of its members in fierce fighting against an overwhelming force. Their
gallant stand delayed the enemy advance enough to allow others to withdraw to
safety.

Among the casualties of the 8th‘s
battle that day were John Waldron and George Bean of Newbury, William Bliss of
Bradford, Henry Richardson of Topsham, Joseph Rollins of Thetford and Samuel
Scott of Ryegate, all wounded during that day.Sgt. Benjamin Waldron of Newbury was taken prisoner and confined in
Libby Prison. He died three days after
being exchanged in April 1865. Franklin Russell of West Fairlee was killed.

In addition to those of the 8th
Vermont, others casualties included James Greig of Newbury, 3rd VT
who was killed. Alfred Clark of Topsham and Charles Porter of Thetford, both
members of the 10th Vermont, were wounded during the action. In the
6th Vermont, Charles Stratton of Thetford and John Doyle of Bradford
were both taken prisoner.

Many Union soldiers retreated in
unorganized alarm, leaving supplies behind. As the Confederates followed
through the deserted Union encampment, the abandoned rations, boots and
blankets were too much of a temptation and some stopped to plunder. Considering
their deplorable state this was not unexpected.

Driven back several miles, the Union
forces made a stand on a ridge near Middletown.The Vermont Brigade lay there awaiting the Confederate charge and then
answered it with a “staggering volley.”

Some units began to waiver in the face of
the deadly rebel onslaught. It was then that Capt. French, in command of a
brigade of New York troops, shouted his famous order to his men: “Don’t run,
men, till the Vermonters do.”Neither
Vermonters nor New Yorkers ran away and did not withdraw until ordered to do
so.

All of this time, the Union army was
without its commander.Sheridan,
returning from his Washington trip, had rested overnight twelve miles away in
Winchester. Riding in haste toward Middletown, he came upon retreating
soldiers..

Sheridan rode among the Union forces, his
presence instilling confidence among the soldiers. TheBurlington Free Press
reporter described his appearance: “It was at this crisis that General Sheridan
arrived upon the field. He rode rapidly down the pike…and reined up in front
of the Brigade and inquired ‘What troops are these?’‘The Sixth Corps, the Vermont Brigade’ was
shouted almost simultaneously from the ranks. ‘Then we are all right!’
exclaimed the general, and swinging his hat over his head, he rapidly rode to the
right amid the exultant shouts of the men.”

The Confederates heard these cheers and
assumed Union reinforcements had arrived. As the Confederates ranks thinned,
the charge lost it momentous. In consideration of the danger of the Union
cavalry, Gen. Early ordered the advance halted. It had been successful to this
point with his forces capturing numerous prisoners and armaments.

This “fatal halt” was considered one of
the war’s greatest blunders.Sheridan
forged a plan to reorganize his army north of Middletown and counterattack.
Sheridan strengthened the Union line with the Vermont Brigade and the 14th
New Hampshire in the middle and what remained of the Vermont 8th on
the right along with Gen. George Custer’s cavalry. This cavalry included both
the 1st Vermont and 1st New Hampshire Cavalry regiments.

About 4 pm the Union line moved forward
and immediately came under a “furious fire of musketry.”At this point Stephen Thomas’ horse Pete
was shot. The West Fairlee officer,temporarily on foot, advanced with his men.For his heroic actions throughout the battle,
Thomas was awarded the Medal of Honor.

The 8th Vermont became the
first Union regiment to break the enemy line.The 14th New Hampshire lost more men killed during this charge
than any other unit in the 19th Corps.

Significant in the Union advance was the
charge of 3,000 cavalrymen. Even as the Union infantry lost thrust, the cavalry
continued to advance, drivingthe enemy before it “with great slaughter,”
and taking many prisoners.

Lt. Col. John W. Bennett of Newbury, in
command of the 1st Vermont Cavalry, wrote: “My men rushed upon them
as though they were the appointed avengers of their comrades slain.”

By 5:30 pm the Confederate line had been
penetrated.At this point the
Confederate commander realized he had more to lose than gain by continuing the
fighting. What had been a Union “skedaddle” in the morning became a Confederate
rout in the afternoon.

Their
retreat was complicated by the collapse of a narrow bridge on the Valley
Pike.It had to abandon the captured
guns and wagons as well as most of their own.

Despite more than twice the number of
casualties as the enemy, the Union army seized “victory from the jaws of
defeat.”The South was never again able
to mount an invasion of the North through the valley.The destruction to the valley denied valuable
resources to the Confederate cause.

The victory had a positive impact on the
reelection of President Lincoln and his plan to only end the war with the
reunification of the Union.For Philip
Sheridan, the victory at Cedar Creek helped to insure his place among America’s
greatest war heroes.

The Vermont Brigade’s actions in the
Battle of Cedar Creek are commemorated in a wall-size painting in what became
known as the Cedar Creek Room in the Vermont State House.It is by Vermont painter and Civil War
veteran Julian Scott, himself a Medal of Honor recipient.

Scott included in this, his most famous
Civil War painting, many of the faces of those who actually participated in the
battle.For example, the painting
includes among its many features, Capt. Thomas Kennedyof the 6th Vermont being carried from
the fieldafter suffering wounds.

It may only be coincidental that Kennedy
is portrayed. Or itt may be that at the
time Scott was being commissioned to paint the picture, Kennedy was a member of
the Legislature and in a position to influence both this and future commissions
by the artist.

Next week will be the 150th
anniversary of this battle in which many local men participated.The Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation plans
to commemorate and re-enact the battle. It is one of the few re-enactments that
take place on an actual battlefield.The
Foundation expects more than 5,000 re-enactors to attend.

During a recent visit to the Cedar Creek
Battlefield, Caledonia-Orange Senator Joe Benning) noticed the lack of
recognition of Vermont’s role.In collaboration
with Howard Coffin, Benning obtained the
approval of the Senate Institutions Committee, of which he is a member, to
create a Vermont roadside historical marker to be placed on the battlefield
during the 150th anniversary ceremony.

The monument will be unveiled in the
middle of the battle re-enactment.Bennings indicated in a recent news release that “the commander of the
Union forces is assembling a formal march-by and battalion salute when the
monument is unveiled.”Benning and
Coffin will present the monument and the accompanying display.That display will include a reproduction of
the Julian Scott painting.

Among those who cared for the wounded at
Cedar Creek were Heman Gillett of Corinth, Samuel Currier of West Fairlee,
Cyrus Allen of Thetford and William H. Haskins of Bradford.Haskins wote a letter to his wife the day on
the day before the battle. He wrote of earlier skirmishes, the two encamped
armies and the need to be paid.His
family home was in a house that still stands across the street from mine.

He also wrote: “You say that you can
hardly realize in the quiet of Bradford that there is a war raging in the land.
I am aware that people in Vermont know nothing of war comparatively, but if
they were in the army an hour or two some days they would have a realizing sense
of war that they would never forget.”

Those who did experience that sense of
war, gained through battles such as those mentioned in this and previous
articles, never forgot.My plan is to
write one additional article in this Civil War commemoration series.That will deal with the lives these veterans
led after the war’s end in April, 1865.

For many their battle experiences shaped
the remainder of their lives. We know all too well that this is true of
combatants of every war before and after this one.

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About Me

I am the President of the Bradford Historical Society. I retired after teaching social studies in Bradford for 42 years, beginning at Bradford Academy in 1964 and finishing at Oxbow High School in June 2006. Throughout my teaching career I emphasized local history as a bridge to understanding United States history. This column has been a major activity of my retirement and I thank those who helped me research the topics and edit the writings. The towns covered include Thetford to Ryegate in Vermont and Lyme to Haverhill in New Hampshire. I have sold out of my first book IN TIMES PAST: ESSAYS FROM THE UPPER VALLEY, which raised $5300 for the Bradford Public Library. Book Two is now available by mail for $20, check payable to the Bradford Public Library, sent to Larry Coffin, PO Box 490, Bradford,VT 05033 or purchased at local outlets.